ICYMI: The Week on Front Row
This week, ESPN was honored with five Sports Emmy Awards, presented for the 34th year by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.
Marketing was among the categories for which ESPN received recognition, as the ongoing “It’s Not Crazy, It’s Sports” brand campaign received the Outstanding Sports Promotional Announcement Institutional prize.
The campaign, created in collaboration with agency Wieden + Kennedy New York, was introduced in 2010 to engage with fans about what makes sports inspiring, entertaining and dramatic. Since its conception, “It’s Not Crazy, It’s Sports” already has produced more than 20 creative executions, ranging from the popular Aloha, Alabama! (Roll Tide) TV spot to most recently surprising fans by offering free hot dogs via kayak in McCovey Cove at a San Francisco Giants game.
The campaign won this week for a collection of three spots: Shake On It, The Name and Born Into It, seen in the video compilation above. Other awards the campaign has received include the SMMA Promax Award (Titanium and Gold), Mark Award (Gold) and Cannes Lion.
ICYMI: Highlights from the past week on Front Row
• First Take’s Stephen A. Smith discussed his recent experience filming a Star Trek commercial, and his acting future. He also named the NBA duo that compares favorably to Star Trek’s famous Captain Kirk-Dr. Spock pairing. Also, see outtakes from Smith’s dramatic interpretations.
• Twenty years after joining ESPN, Karl Ravech remains one of the company’s most prominent voices and one of Major League Baseball’s most respected commentators. His colleagues shared their thoughts about Ravech in recognition of his ESPN anniversary.
• This week’s edition of E:60 focused on one of the rarest achievements in sports, the perfect game. Many perfect game pitchers — from Don Larsen to David Cone to Randy Johnson — reflected on their historic feats. Feature Producer Martin Khodabakhshian shared how the Perfect Game feature came together.
• On Monday, U.S. Women’s National Team forward and Olympic soccer gold medalist Alex Morgan visited ESPN’s Bristol, Conn. campus to talk about her new book The Kicks: Saving the Team. She also talked with Front Row about her This is SportsCenter spot, the new espnW Women in Sports wall and some of her favorite ESPN MLS commentators.
Row of Four
Our favorites from across ESPN over the past week
• From Rick Reilly: Four amputations couldn’t stop this Illinois prep baseball player.
• From Grantland’s Chuck Klosterman: A visit inside — OK, near — the Cleveland war room on the occasion of the NFL Draft.
• From espnW: LSU’s ace softball pitcher savoring time with her dad.
• Enjoy an array of photos in this gallery from ESPN Images.
Ana Livia Coelho contributed to this post
